Strength from my Sister
by Bohogal1998
Summary: Inspired by the episode, A Rock and A Hard Place. Takes place right before and During the Abby/Palmer scene in Abby's Lab. This explains how Jimmy ended up back at NCIS in the first place and what he and Abby are both feeling and thinking during the moment. One chap for each of them!Please give this story a chance! It's not as boring as I probably make it sound! This is a two shot.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey! This is my second NCIS story! It was inspired by the beautiful Abby/Palmer scene in the epsiode,** ** _A Rock and A Hard Place._** **There will be two chapters. One from Jimmy's point of view and the second from Abby's. Please Read AND review! Thanks! Enjoy!**

Jimmy Palmer and his wife Breena headed home from the hospital with broken hearts. They had just found out that the baby they had dreamed of and prepared for for months wasn't going to be theirs after all. The birth mother had changed her mind. Once they'd pulled into their driveway, Palmer helped his wife inside.

"Sweetie, Do you need anything? Can I get you something?" Breena, who till now had been completely zoned out, pulled herself into the present enough to shake her head at her husband.

"No thankyou,Babe. I think I just want to lie down for awhile." Palmer nodded and helped her up and led her to their room. Once there, Breena curled herself up on the bed. Palmer sat next to her and absently stroked her hair before asking,

"Do you want me to stay here with you?" Breena looked guiltily at him and said,

"Honestly, I just want to be alone for awhile. I'll probably take a nap." Palmer looked sadly at his wife and said,

"Ok. Well, will you be alright if I go back into work for a little bit?" Breena nodded.

"Of course, Honey. You go on in. You need to keep busy. I understand. But Jimmy, please take the presents and things with you. I want them out of here as soon as possible. It…It'll hurt to much… to see them all the time." Palmer just nodded and then leaned over to kiss his wife before quietly leaving the room. He gathered up everything in the baby's room and closed the door. Then he carried it out to the car and drove to the Navy Yard. He was on auto pilot. He didn't know how, but he soon found himself getting out of the elevator across from Abby's lab. Abby was standing near her door, so she saw him get off the elevator.

"Jimmy? Why aren't you at the hospital?" Jimmy didn't answer her yet. He just kept walking slowly into the lab before stopping in front of her. Abby got a concerned look on her face.

"Did something happen to your baby?", She asked worriedly. Palmer slowly shook his head and found his voice.

"No. The baby's fine." he said with a small smile then added,

"He just not, um…." He began.

 _"_ _Ours",_ he wanted to say but couldn't get the words out. Abby just stood looking at him, waiting patiently for him to continue while nervously fidgeting with her hands. After a moment he continued softly.

"The mom decided that, ah, she's gonna keep him.", Palmer finished saying the last part in a little above a whisper before breaking down. Abby held her arms out and Palmer stepped into them.

"I'm sorry.", Abby whispered as she pulled him in tight.

"Abby.", was the only other word Palmer could get out through his sobs. He was trying to ask, _Why_? He wanted to say, _Don't let go!_ But he was crying to hard to say anything else. Abby didn't seem to need any other words. She just hugged him tighter and silently and gently rocked him back and forth. Palmer just clung to Abby and let her hold him. He knew that when he got home he would need to be strong for Breena. Right now though, his own heart felt like it was broken into a thousand peices. In order to be fully there for his wife, he needed strenghth. It was his turn to be comforted. He was getting that strength and comfort right here. In the arms of his big sister. He knew she would be there for him as long as he needed her. Then he could have the strength to go back home and be there for Breena.

 **Well, There's Palmer's side of things. And the story of How he got back to the Navy Yard in the first place. Hope you enjoyed! Remember ALL reviews are MUCH appreciated! PLEASE don't forget! Catch ya later!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is the second and final chapter! It's Abby's POV with just a tiny bit of Mcgee and Gibbs thrown in. They don't have any lines. They are just mentioned. Hope you enjoy this chapter!. Please read AND review! Thanks!**

Abby Sciuto had just updated her team with her forensic results. After sending them on their way to bring in the bad guy, she heard the elevator across from her lab ding. She wondered who it could be. Her team had gone out from her floor, so they hadn't needed the elevator. Abby waited by the door to see who would get off. To her surprise, it was the ME's assistant, Jimmy Palmer. He was supposed to be at the hospital with his wife, waiting on the birth of the baby they were adopting.

"Jimmy? Why aren't you at the hospital?", Abby asked, confused. As he slowly walked closer to her, she could tell that something was VERY wrong.

"Did something happen to your baby?",she asked, feeling worried. Palmer shook is head as he came inside the lab,stopping in front of Abby.

"No. The baby's fine. He's just not, um…." Palmer began and the stopped. He seemed to be having trouble finding the words he wanted. Abby just stood looking at him, nervously fidgeting with her hands. He was scaring her ,but she waited patiently and wordlessly for him to continue. After what seemed like a long time to Abby, but was really only a few seconds, Palmer finally found his voice and began again.

"The mom decided that, ah, she's gonna keep him.", he finished in a little above a whisper. Abby reached out for him as she saw his face begin to crumble.

"I'm sorry.", was all she could say in a whisper as she pulled him into a tight hug, shutting her eyes against his pain. Her heart hurt so much for her little brother. She was looking forward to this baby almost as much as the Palmers. She had been so excited about being an "aunt". As Palmer began to cry against Abby's shoulder, he managed to choke out one more word before completely breaking down into sobs.

"Abby?" Abby knew he probably had SO many questions going through his mind that he couldn't voice through the sobs. This time, Abby HAD no answers for him, though. After all, this wasn't a problem that could be solved with forensics. So Abby said nothing. Instead, she did the only thing she knew to do. She held her little brother tighter,silently and gently rocking him back and forth as she felt his sobs shaking her along with him. Abby knew she needed to remain strong for Palmer, so she held her own tears back. They stayed like that for awhile before Jimmy's sobs reduced to sniffles and then stopped all together. He pulled back and wiped his tears. The two friends didn't speak for a few more moments and then Abby said,

"So, um, how's Breena doing with all this?" Palmer gave a humorless chuckle and said,

"Better than me, that's for sure. She wants to try again right away." Abby looked at him knowingly.

"And you don't feel ready yet?" Palmer shook his head, sadly.

"I see where she's coming from, but I'm devastated, Abby. I can't even think about trying again this soon. I feel horrible about that. I know I'm being unfair to Breena, but I can't help how I feel. I'm just not as strong as her." Abby put both hands on his shoulders and said firmly but gently.

"Jimmy, Breena's just as devastated as you are. Maybe even more. She's just handling it differently. Not better, just differently. It's ok that you aren't ready, yet. I'm sure that Breena understands that. She'll wait for you. Breena. Loves you! Because of that, she will go with your emotional timeline. There is NOTHING wrong with how you are dealing with this. You got that?. And Ducky, me, the team, all of us are here for you. Both of you. For whatever you need. Ok?" Palmer slowly nodded, but didn't look entirely convinced.

"Thanks,Abby. There is something I need your help with right now, if you wouldn't mind." Abby gave him an encouraging smile.

"Yeah, of course. What do ya need, Jimmy?"

"Well, I have all the presents in the car. Breena suggested I get them out of the house. It hurts too much to look at them. Me because I'm not ready to try again ,and Breena because she knows I'm not ready and she doesn't want the reminder around till I am ready, I guess. Could you help me unload them?" Abby gave his arm a gentle squeeze before saying,

"Absolutely. You go bring the car around to the evidence garage and I'll be there in a minute." Palmer gave her a small smile and headed back out of the lab. Abby sighed. She wished she could do more to make things better for Jimmy. For Breena,too. Suddenly, She had an idea. She remembered what she'd done for Ziva when her father had died. She'd learned then,that the smell of fresh baked anything could help someone feel better and more relaxed. She decided she come back down to the lab and begin baking as soon as she'd finished helping Palmer. She could maybe take a batch over to Jimmy and Breena later that night. Maybe she could even have some done in time to send home with Jimmy when he left work. She was headed to the elevator feeling more useful than she had a moment ago, when she got a message on her phone. It was from Mcgee. She smiled when she saw what it was and headed to the evidence garage to meet Palmer.

"Hi. I just got in here so you're right on time. Thanks for helping me with this.", Jimmy said when he saw his friend. Abby smiled and said.

"Anytime.", Then her eyes widened as she realized what she'd said and added.

"I mean, I'm willing to help you, anytime, with anything, you need. I hope it's not this again,but, I'm glad, you know, to help you with whatever you need, whenever you need something." Abby finally stopped rambling, feeling awkward. Palmer just held up a hand and replied,

"Relax, Abby. I know what you meant. Come on. Let's get this over with." Abby nodded and said.

"Yeah. Ok. But then,I have something I want to show you."

"

Ok. What is it?",Palmer asked.

I'll show you when we've got this stuff unloaded." Abby promised. After they'd gotten everything unloaded and set aside, Abby set up the computer in the evidence garage and loaded the video, saying,

"Mcgee sent me this video on my way down here."

"Ok.", said Palmer.

"The former rock star that Tony was helping had that concert tonight, you know?" Abby began in explanation. Palmer nodded and Abby continued to explain.

"Well, he was too nervous to go on and so Tony went out on stage with him." The video started and Abby and Palmer watched Tony perform with the rock singer. After a few minutes Palmer asked about the case and how it had gotten resolved. Abby explained to him in great detail before they both went back to the video, which by then was nearly finished. When it ended, Abby turned it off and turned to her friend.

"I-I thought that might cheer you up." Palmer made a soft noise halfway between a sigh and a chuckle.

"Yeah." Abby looked at him sympathetically before pulling him into another hug and rubbing his back. She looked up when she heard someone else approaching. It was their boss, Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Abby gave him a sad smile and headed out of the evidence garage to give the two men some privacy. If anyone could help Jimmy, it was Gibbs. Abby was sure of that. She got on the elevator and headed back to her lab to start baking. About an hour later, when Jimmy came back to say goodby. Abby had already finished two batches of chocolate chip cookies.

"It smells really good in here. What's going on,Abby?", Jimmy asked.

"Well, remember what I did after Ziva's father died?" Jimmy nodded.

"Yeah. You baked several batches of oatmeal raisen cookies.", he said, chuckling softly. Abby smiled and replied,

"Well, It worked pretty well last time, so I thought I'd maybe try it again… for this." Abby took one of the batches and put them in a container which she handed to Jimmy.

"Here. You can share these with Breena." Jimmy smiled and took the container.

"Thanks,Abby. You're a really good friend." Abby simply put her hand on his shoulder and asked,

"So how did it go with,Gibbs? Did he help you at all?"

"Actually, he did. He yelled at me.", began Palmer. Abby's eyes widened. Palmer quickly continued.

"No! It actually worked! I'd told him maybe I wasn't ready to be a dad yet if I couldn't handle what happened today. He told me that the fact that I'm feeling this way means I AM ready. He told me that parenthood is full of pain as well as joy and that I shouldn't give up if I really want to be a dad that badly." Abby nodded and smiled.

"Gibbs always knows the right thing to say."

"Yeah. Well, he certainly said the right thing to me. It was exactly what I needed to hear. Afterwards, he helped me load all the baby stuff back into the car. I'll keep it around for when we eventually do get our baby."

"I'm really glad about that,Jimmy.", Abby said softly before taking the other batch of cookies and putting them in a container to share with the team and Ducky the next day. After she'd done that Palmer realized he'd better get back home to Breena. It was nearly dinnertime by now. He decided he'd pick up something on the way home so his wife wouldn't have to cook. He walked over to Abby and gave her a hug, saying,

"Thanks,Abby. For everything. The cookies, the peptalk, the hugs, and, well, just for being there and being you."

"Anytime,Jimmy. I'll always be here. We're family. You know that."Abby, replied, once they pulled apart. Jimmy responded,

"I do. But thanks, just the same. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye, Abby." Abby waved at her friend as he headed to the elevator. Then she realized she had enough dough left for another two batches of cookies so she stayed and made one batch to take to the nuns for the next bowling party and one to take home for herself and to share with her friend, Carol. As she baked, she thought about Jimmy and Breena. She was sure they'd be parents for real soon. She had faith. The Palmers would make great parents for any kid, and they deserved to be happy. Jimmy and Breena might not feel very hopeful right now, but that was ok. Abby would be optimistic for all of them. She would have hope when they couldn't. Because that's what family does.

 **Well, There's Abby's side of things. It's longer than Jimmy's part. I just couldn't decide where to end it. I hope you all like what I did with it. Remember ALL reviews are MUCH appreciated! Please don't forget! Thanks for reading this story!**


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